Railboad-signal



A. BUGBEE. Signal Apparatus for Railway Stations and Crossings,

Patnted Sept. 7, 1852.

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UNITED s'rns PATENT orrioni.

AURIN BUG I BEE, OF CHARLESTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

RAILROAD-SIGNAL.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 9,245, dated September '7, 1852.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AURIN BUGBEE, of Charleston, in the county of WVorcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful or improved alarm or signal apparatus for the purpose of denoting the approach of a car or train of cars toward either a railway-station or the crossing of a railway by a common carriage or road or footpath, as the case may be; and I do hereby declare that the same is fully described and represented in the following specification and the accompanying drawings, letters, figures, and references thereof.

Of the said drawings Figure 1 exhibits a top view of a railway track and road crossing and my alarm apparatus as applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a front or side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical and longitudinal section of the gallows frame and the alarm signal apparatus. Fig. 4 is an inside elevation or section of one of the posts of the frame and so made as to exhibit the mechanism within it. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section of such post and the restoring tripping lever by the side of it.

In the said drawings Arepresents the railway track or tracks.

B is a frame erected at the road crossing C, O, and in line of the railway, such frame consisting of two posts a, b, and a cap timber c. On the top of the cap timber 0 I erect an arched frame cl for supporting a bell D which is fastened to the lower end of a vertical spring E whose upper end is firmly attached to the upper part of the arched frame 03, the whole being as seen in the drawings. I make the spring so that it will vibrate in the direction of the line of the railway; and for the purpose of insuring a perfect elasticity to it so as to cause the bell to operate to good advantage I make the spring thinner at its middle than it is at its two ends as seen in Fig. 6 which is an edge view of the spring.

Near the upper part of the spring and a short distance below where it is fastened to the arched frame I attach to it two leading cords, chains, or wires E, E, one being on one side of it while the other is on the opposite side of it. These primary leading cords, as they may be termed, I extend and respectively fasten to the outer ends of the inferior arms of two horizontal levers F, F, that are respectively supported and so as to turn freely on the tops of two posts G, G, ar-

ranged with respect to the bell and the railway as seen in the drawings. Under ordinary circumstances and when not in operation those levers are made to stand at angles with respect to the track and their cords as seen inFig. 1, they being each kept in such positions by means of a small stud or projection 6 being made to abut against a like stud The stud 6 extends downward from the turning hub g of the lever while the projection 7 extends upward from the top of the post on which the lever turns. In Fig. 7 is shown an underside'view of the lever on an enlarged scale. In Fig. 8 We have a top View of the post on which such lever is placed. In Fig. 9 we have a vertical section of the post lever and cap nut, the studs 6, f, being represented in such figures. The lever hub g is made to turn around on a pin 70 extended upward from the top of the post, such pin havin a screw cut on it on which a nut or cap Z 1S screwed, and not only keeps the lever in place on the post, but being somewhat larger in its diameter than is the hub of the lever, itv protects the hub of the lever from rain or snow. I deem it advisable that the superior or longer arm of the lever, and in fact all such arms of such levers as appertain to my invention should be made capable of springing in horizontal directions for reasons that will be obvious from what follows.

At suitable distances from each post G, G, I arrange one or more other similar posts H, H, and provide each of the said posts with turning levers I, I all made and applied to the posts as the levers F, F, are to theirs. And I connect the outer ends of the inferior arms of all the levers on each side of the bell and belonging to the striking apparatus by cords drawn tight as seen at K, K.

One or more arms or projections or the equivalent of the same is to be so arranged on each engine, car, or train of cars, in such manner that as the said engine, car, or train, passes by the posts and toward the bell, such arm or arms will be carried into contact with the superior arm of each lever that may be on the side of the bell that such engine or car may be, and so move such arm or the lever of which it makes a part as to draw the bell in'a direction toward such lever. As soon as the said arm of the car passes by the lever the latter is set free so as to enable the spring of the bell to draw it back to its original position. Such a movement of each lever will cause the bell to so vibrate as to ring, and such vibrations may be kept up for any desirable length of time by having a suflicient number of posts and levers connected with the main levers F, F, Iwould also remark that the posts and levers serve to sustain the draw cords, as the telegraph posts do their wires.

In connection with the alarm bell or apparatus I make use of a signal flag or board apparatus or telegraph which may be thus described.

M denotes a signal board or flag which is made heavy, or when light, attached to a weight N. It is suspended by cords or strips m, m, to a Windlass barrel O placed horizontally betweenthe posts of the frame B and arranged as seen in the drawings. The Windlass is made capable of a free rotation and has over balance weights P, P, suspended from near each end of it by cords Q, Q, such weight and cord being placed within a vertical recess 0 made in one of the posts of the frame. .To each of the weights P, P, another cord R or R is attached, such cord being carried upward and over a pulley S or S and from thence to, and is fastened to the outer extremity of the inferior arm of a lever T or T placed on the top of a post U or U as seen in the drawings, and made and applied to the posts as the other levers F or F are made and applied to their posts.

WVit-hin the recess 0 of one of the posts there is a spring catch U which by means of a cord 1 is connected to a hub or round block 8 that is made to turn on the top of a post t and to have a spring arm at extended from it as seen in the drawings. When the weight P is drawn upward above the spring U such spring should move inward toward the middle of the post so that as soon as the weight descends it may rest on the top of the spring or catch and be kept up until the arm 10 is moved so as to draw the spring catch out from under or thus supporting the weight. When the weight P or P is raised up, which is effected by the projecting arm of a car striking against and moving by the lever T or T, the flag or signal board will descend below its covering boards '2), o, and it will so remain until the said arm strikes against and passes the arm a so as to allow the weight P, P, to fall and rotate the windlass in such manner as to elevate the flag or board M into the space between the boards '0, 11. When such board M is down into its lowest position it indicates that a car or train is approaching the road crossing, and this, as well as the bell, gives warning to persons who may be on the road, particularly those who in consequence of deafness would not be likely to hear the bell.

I would remark that the cord 7' should be so applied to the round block 8 that a lateral horizontal movement of the arm u in either direction may cause the end to wind on the block and draw the spring catch outward. This being the case it matters notin what direction a train on the railroad may be approaching the road crossing; as soon as its arm meets and strikes against and moves the arm u, the spring will be drawn outward from under the weight P. After the engine, car, or train, has passed by the crossing it will not again actuate the bell or the signal flag, because its arm will strike the lever arms of the posts on the opposite side of the bell and pass by them without creating any draft on the cords such as would either ring the bell or actuate the signal apparatus. The superior arms of the levers are made as stiff springs to allow of the ready passage of the engine or car arm by them under such circumstances. By

applying to the spring of the bell the two cords E, E, arranged on opposite sides of it, any contraction of one by changes of temperature will counterbalance that of the other so as to always preserve the necessary perpendicularity of the spring of the bell When such bell is not ringing.

From the above it will be seen that the object of my invention is to provide a mechanical means by which engines and cars shall invariably give a timely and efi'ectual warning of their own approach to any crossing or place of danger or station on the line of railroad by ringing a bell stationed at the crossing or other dangerous place or station and displaying a signal flag stationed at said places, which flag is so constructed as to answer not only as a signal warning of the immediate approach of an engine or car or train, but also in its displayed state ofi'ers all the desirable barriers to prevent crossing of the track by the traveling public when attended with extreme hazard to life and property, and

which bell and flag assume their position of rest as soon as the danger is passed.

In a double track railway it is customary for the trains that run on one track to run in one direction, while those of the other track run in a reverse or the opposite direction. In the application of my invention to such a railway, it may be placed between the two tracks as shown in Fig. 1; and in the drawings, and I would remark, that under such circumstances, some or all of the tripping levers on one side of the bell or signal flag may be disposed so as to ,be

In this case plied to the opposite side of the frame at the crossing, and to the other over balance weight of the Windlass-barrel, all of which will be readily seen by any constructor who may be called to make such an application to a double track railway.

I do not claim the simple combination of a bell hung to a spring, a cord or chain leading therefrom and a tripping lever or apparatus which when moved in one direction shall pull the cord and cause the bell to vibrate, as this is a well known combination applied to doors for the purpose of sounding an alarm; but

What I do claim as my invention is 1. The combination of a single bell D, a spring E two cords E, E, and two or more tripping arms or levers F, F, as applied to a railway and supporting frame at a road crossing of such railway and so that the contraction of one of the two ropes by change of temperature or otherwise may be counterbalanced by that of the other and not draw the bell laterally out of place, as it would be likely to, were but one rope or wire used.

2. I claim the combination of the weighted or heavy flag or signal board M, with its suspension chains or cords m, m, the windlass barrel 0, the over balance Weight or weights P, P, and suspension cords or chains Q, Q, the leading cord R, or R, passing over the pulley S, or S, the tripping lever T or T, the spring catch U and its cord 1", and the trippnig lever or arm u, all being arranged and made to operate to gether substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I havehereto set my signature, this twenty-sixth day of February, A. D. 1852.

AURIN BUGBEE. Witnesses:

R. H. EDDY, GEO. W. CUTTER. 

